The 2024 Rosa Parks Award
Presented by the MLK, Jr. Association of Asheville and Buncombe County.
By Aisha Adams –
The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Association of Asheville and Buncombe County’s Community Outreach Providing Empowerment (COPE) committee recently announced the recipients of The Rosa Parks Award.
The award honors women in our community who have:
- Fostered a culture of inclusion in the Asheville community.
- Worked to achieve a just society for the disadvantaged.
- Exemplified a nonviolent philosophy in pursuit of a better life for non-majority people.
- Inspired direct action in the cause of social justice.
On March 19, 2024, the MLK Association honored three women with an award ceremony at Black Wall Street AVL in the River Arts District.
Asheville native Renee White has been president of the East End/Valley Street Neighborhood Association for 11 years, leading advocacy efforts for community investments and public policy changes. She is also a member of the Legacy Neighborhood Coalition, which includes the Shiloh Community Association, the Burton Street Community Association, the Southside Community Association, and the Emma Association.
For the past six years, as the 1st Vice Chair of precinct 1.1, the Stephens Lee Center, Renee has worked to educate residents about the electoral process and ensure that members of the community have access to free elections.
Becky Stone is a storyteller and actress who was born in Philadelphia, PA. She graduated from Vassar College in 1970, majoring in drama and performing with an award-winning folk singing group. She moved to Fairview in the early 1980s and has become renowned for her portrayals of important women in African American history.
Over the years, she has performed with the Asheville Community Theater, the Montford Players Southern Appalachian Repertory Theater, New Studio of Dance, Haywood Arts Regional Theater, Highland Repertory Theater, Lime Kiln Theater in Virginia, and the Warehouse Theater in Greenville SC.
Johnnie N. Grant is the founder and publisher of The Urban News, which each month reports on, supports, and highlights African American and multicultural communities, businesses, and professionals in and around the city of Asheville, Buncombe County, western North Carolina, the state of NC, and the nation. The Urban News draws its readership across racial and ethnic lines, as well as former Asheville residents who maintain their involvement in this community from wherever they live—nationally and internationally.
